Born in Blood

Using the bats' hairy bodies, Liam weaved together a long black robe, covering him from shoulder to shin. It was roughly made and impractical, but somehow, aesthetically pleasing.

'It'll do for now.' He thought, before assessing his circumstances.

'Right now, I'm in the Night Bats' territory. Further along are the Death Owls and Plague Rats... I need to explore this place horizontally and find out what to do.'

Liam's stern gaze fell towards the abyss.

'Going down is inevitable. I'll need to prepare for it.'

With a plan in mind, Liam spent the following days jumping from cave to cave, all the while, the threat of magical beasts never relented.

He killed beast after beast, and each cave he went into was infested with dozens of them. His battle prowess naturally increased, and he made sure not to fall behind in training his mental sphere.

In the span of two weeks, he passed by the territories of the Plague Rats, Darkness Python's and Death Owls – moving forward.

Over time, he got used to the taste of raw meat. He didn't even gag or wretch anymore when he ate them.

His previously scorched hair started to grow as well, eventually growing long enough to reach his eyeline - resembling an undercut parted in the middle.

However, his green eyes took on a bestial look. Living with magical beasts for so long had its effects.

Nonetheless, Liam's appearance was the least of his worries, since despite two weeks passing by and hundreds of meters traversed, he was unable to find anything useful to help him escape.

Liam shook his head.

'I've done nothing but kill beasts and jump from one cave to another like a monkey. Repeating the same thing for another week isn't wise.'

His steeled gaze shifted towards the abyss once more.

'If I can't go up... I'll need to go down.'

His intent had been set, and without delay, he slowly but steadily began to descend, choosing the easiest magical beast types for him to deal with on the way.

He was forced to use the Fleeting Foot spell a few times during his journey, since the packs lower down were much more powerful and higher in number.

Using the spell didn't give him drawbacks anymore. Repeated usage, however, was bound to cause negative effects.

It took another week to get closer and closer to the abyss, though the process was slow, Liam had to rest after clearing a single beast pack.

Once he got close enough, he realized the 'abyss' he saw was actually a screen of thick, dark smoke, blocking his mental energy from piercing through it.

Before carelessly jumping through the screen, he threw a Night Bat corpse at it, paying close attention to any changes.

The dead bat plummeted and submerged itself within the darkness – Liam caught a glimpse of its body being visibly corroded, before he lost sight of it completely.

'There's no other option but to endure the smoke and climb down.'

Liam frowned, but took out his katana and wakizashi nonetheless.

A moment later, he used them as a piton to climb into the corrosive smoke, holding his breath.

It felt as though his entire body was being dipped in acid, but he gritted his teeth and forced himself to climb downwards.

He obviously closed his eyes to avoid being blinded, and used his mental waves to assess when to open them.

An entire minute had passed with him in that state, before he finally felt the smoke dissipate.

Before he could catch his breath, loud sounds of wings flapping entered his ears.

His eyes widened in shock as they witnessed a giant Rank 4 Night Bat flying towards him -- a considerable distance away, but with its maws wide open.

Liam didn't let the fear paralyze him, not like last time. His mental energy spread instantly, brushing against the terrain for a foothold.

He seemed to be at the top of a dungeon – where the canyon gorge intersected with the rough, jagged ceiling.

Wing flapping noises grew louder – Liam's heart pumped like an engine, the noises syncing with each other.

His narrowed eyes spotted a small alcove, just big enough for him to fit in.

He could feel the Night Bat - which was 6 meters large and, with its wings unfurled, spanned more than 15 meters - behind him. A trail of smog followed its trajectory, corroding the stone it brushed against.

Liam cocked his thighs - every one of his muscles bulging - then propelled himself at the alcove at an incredible speed – the sweat on his face dragged away from just how fast he was.

He collided with the cave, cracking his shoulder, but just a second later, the giant bat flew past him – a tiny wisp of its smoke entering the space he occupied.

That tiny black wisp fell on his foot and instantly consumed a chunk of his flesh before dissipating.

Liam bit on his lip to suppress his shout, grunting in pain.

Panting heavily, he took out a bit of rat hide to cover the oozing wound with, before he started to absorb 'Ora' from his surroundings.

The world essence was much more dense in that space, and 'Ora' naturally nourished his body.

That chunk of consumed flesh started to heal, pieces of tissue squirming and conjoining to form new muscles. His shoulder was still cracked, but thankfully, they would reform over time.

After calming down, he decided to peer down from the cavity and survey his surroundings properly.

His eyes widened in complete shock.

An incredibly vast, uneven dungeon floor met his incredulous eyes. Dark stone pillars rose from its scarred and battle worn surface, upon which a few Rank 4 Night Bats and Death Owls perched upon.

On the ground, Elephants, Lizards, Panthers and even Crocodiles lived in their own habitats, but strangely, they co-existed with one another and didn't infringe on each other's territories.

That didn't necessarily mean they weren't hostile to different species, judging by their powerful growls and hisses vibrating through the air.

All were in the fourth Rank, and had the same element of darkness. From what Liam could see, there were more than a dozen Rank 4 beasts... in each pack.

Some looked bigger than others, meaning they were even in different stages.

Overall, the area was bigger than Ucladd and the Underground combined. And further along, were large passages, covered with veils of darkness which Liam's mortal eyes couldn't see past.

Within the very center of the entire wide plain, was a giant pit, exuding a faint yellow light. Dense 'Ora' vapor visibly oozed from it, and from where Liam was, he couldn't see the bottom.